New classes explore post-Sept. 11 world

College courses take on terrorism

In a dark and cavernous lecture room on the University of Illinois at Chicago campus this semester, about 80 students have been tackling subjects rarely explored before in academia.

They've been forced to reflect on questions such as: Could you consider suicide bombers "courageous" in any way? Who really is Osama bin Laden, and how did he gain popularity? What is the psychological profile of a terrorist?

The UIC course on terrorism is among a growing number of attempts by universities to respond to more than just a new thirst for international studies. It is a desire to take terrorism apart for insights into addressing it worldwide.

The course, which was hastily crafted by criminal justice professor Matthew Lippman after the Sept. 11 attacks, has attracted a diverse group of students. Among them are a Chicago police officer, ROTC students, Arabs, Muslims and white kids from the suburbs, all with a new interest in a foreign subject.

"Nobody really wants to look at the underlying factors because we were attacked ... but if this is the start of something, we need as much information as possible," said Jeff Hunter, 25, the police officer enrolled in the class.

The University of Notre Dame also introduced a course specifically addressing terrorism. It is titled Problems of Contemporary Violence: Terrorism, War, and Peace after Sept. 11.

Other campuses are remodeling American government, sociology or religion classes to incorporate issues related to the war on terrorism. Nearly all Chicago-area universities have such course offerings this semester, some of which will become permanent.

Notre Dame government professor Robert Johansen proposed the terrorism course after university leaders called for classes to address the intense student reaction and confusion following the attacks. His course, offered to students from many disciplines, filled up quickly and now includes 157 students.

"I think one of the most important matters that they're learning about is the way in which there are conditions that drive people to political extremism that we need to be conscious of," Johansen said. "It's important to understand what drives people to political violence in order to construct a very sensible antidote to war."

Johansen said the university's curriculum changes--from the terrorism course to a range of other classes addressing international conflict--may go a long way toward getting a new generation to think more deeply about world conflict.

"In the long run, we've got to learn to live in tolerance with those who have different religious traditions or we're all doomed," he said.

The new courses present challenges.

Reliable information on terrorist networks is tough to come by because much of the research has been done in secret by government agencies, Lippman said.

There's also the problem of tackling religious and cultural sensitivities in a diverse class. As he explores the more delicate issues, such as the rise of Islamic terrorists and religion's role in terrorism, Lippman enters an academic minefield.

One Palestinian student visited his office practically in tears because of anti-Islamic sentiments she heard after a class discussion on Islam. At other points, students have criticized Lippman for being anti-war because he asks that they think about U.S. foreign policy decisions that might have fueled the terrorists. Lippman says students are highly patriotic while many academics on campus are anti-war, the opposite situation from the Vietnam War era.

After one recent class, the frustration was clear on Lippman's face as he ended a discussion on religion and terrorism. He had expected to dissect a letter found in the luggage of Mohamed Atta, who is suspected of leading the hijacking of the first plane to hit the World Trade Center. But he decided against it for fear of offending Muslims.

"To me, the hardest thing is the sensitivities," Lippman said. "I'm almost glad to not be talking about it today."

On most days, though, Lippman cannot avoid the raw emotions.

Lippman gives students volumes of contemporary articles and films, studying everything from bin Laden and suicide bombers to terrorist networks in the Middle East and the psychology of religious extremists throughout the world.

Lippman encourages students to express their feelings through frequently assigned essays, many of which are read in class anonymously.

The concerned Palestinian student, for example, wrote about her experience in an essay that was later read by another student in front of the class.

"For me, Sept. 11 has been extremely hard," the student wrote. "When this event occurred, I felt the same pain as anyone else around me. ... I love America, but I have never been more resentful of her people as I am now. How dare you judge me by the actions of a demented few?"

Other students said they appreciated the chance to discuss current international events.

"It's definitely a big deal what happened here. But this is what happens all over the world every day. Here, it's something that people are just waking up to," said Samyukt Bajaj, a 21-year-old political science student who arrived in America as a youngster from India.

Lippman said his students are desperate for a chance to work through their emotions. One of the first assignments was to read and respond to newspaper profiles of victims.

"Instead of just watching the terrorist events in other countries, I can feel for those people now," one student wrote for that assignment. "I didn't pay attention to other countries because that couldn't happen here. We were untouchable, right?"